Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

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Jack
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Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by Jack » Tue Aug 26, 2014 11:37 am

So this was the comment I got:

"The piece is beautifully composed, but it could use an improved recording. Overall, fuller and clearer sound are advisable. Strings could use expressiveness, vibrancy and some heft. The piano part could have a warmer, roomier and fuller tone."


I use Reason Pianos refill which uses high quality samples of real pianos and for the strings I used Miroslav Philharmonik which I was under the impression were also pretty good samples.

I'm not opposed to looking into higher end sample libraries, I just want to make sure I use the best ones. What are you guys using these days? Are any of them good out of the box or does it take some effects/EQ-ing to get them to sound realistic?

Thanks in advance for any input.

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themichaelscott
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Re: Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by themichaelscott » Tue Aug 26, 2014 2:27 pm

I would suggest to keep trying with what you've got before dropping more money. From my experience most sounds need to be tailored to the situation. I recently started using Native Instruments Komplete but I can still make my old original Reason NN1 sampler (or whatever it was called) sound more realistic for pianos because I did it for a decade. Strings have always been hard for me as well. If I have nothing else playing the strings sound great right out of the box, but once I've got a song built around it I have to adjust a lot to make everything fit. It's hard to really say without hearing you track though.

With the comment you received you must be close, I would remix and post on Peer to Peer for critiques.

Michael

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Re: Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by Jack » Wed Aug 27, 2014 8:47 am

themichaelscott wrote:I would suggest to keep trying with what you've got before dropping more money. From my experience most sounds need to be tailored to the situation. I recently started using Native Instruments Komplete but I can still make my old original Reason NN1 sampler (or whatever it was called) sound more realistic for pianos because I did it for a decade. Strings have always been hard for me as well. If I have nothing else playing the strings sound great right out of the box, but once I've got a song built around it I have to adjust a lot to make everything fit. It's hard to really say without hearing you track though.

With the comment you received you must be close, I would remix and post on Peer to Peer for critiques.

Michael
Thanks for the response, Michael. Any advice on what to do to the instruments to make them sound more realistic? One thing I have noticed is that strings often seem to need to be slightly ahead of time in order to sound in time, if that makes any sense. Since a lot of them sort of swell, the note needs to start slightly before the other instruments in order for all of them to sound in sync. Not sure if anyone else has experienced this.

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Re: Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by robbspencer » Thu Jan 22, 2015 10:49 pm

Hi jack,
Have you tried lowering the "attack" parameter. The higher the knob is turned "up" the longer it takes for the sound to kick in...
Pretty simple but i guess not everybody knows that.
Just my 2 cents :) good luck!

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Re: Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by andygabrys » Fri Jan 23, 2015 12:27 am

don't be shy Jack - post a link to your track if you want tailored opinions on the thick / thin argument.

re: samples - i have foolishly invested some cash in some libraries that turned out to not be that awesome - or rather weren't that awesome for my skills and the way I wanted to work. So i would agree to hold off spending until you have a really good idea what you just can't live without.

the slow ramp up on string samples is pretty common. depending on the samples you might have to time shift them as you did, or use strings with a different articulation. Sometimes using a certain string patch just doesn't work really well for a fast run, you either need strings that have adjustable parameters programmed in or sampled recordings of runs as are included in some libraries. Otherwise it sounds "fake" to an experienced listener.

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Re: Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by Joseph » Mon Jan 26, 2015 1:20 pm

I use Vienna strings which sound great out of the box and amazing after I spend HOURS programming them. definitely automate the attack, expression, volume, etc to make it sound as real as possible. Is there a way I can hear the track?

-Joseph

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Re: Return due to thin strings & piano. Please help!

Post by Joseph » Mon Jan 26, 2015 1:24 pm

This was a return that I got on a track that I Submitted when I first got Vienna:

The compositional content is good, but the recording could use further development in order to deliver an orchestral sound that convincingly conveys the impression of a human ensemble.

Hope this helps.

-Joseph

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